Resources

Our 100 sequence (101 in the fall, 102 during J-term, and 103 in the spring) is geared toward quick and early proficiency in comprehension and free expression. Grammatical structures are practiced through group activities and situational exercises (e.g., role-playing games and partner interviews). German 101 is designed for students with no previous experience with German. Most of our students start taking German in their first year, but any student is welcome to take 101 at any point in their college career. Please note: 101 is only offered in the fall! Upon completion of German 103, most students achieve a solid A2 or B1 level.

German 200 (201 is only offered in the fall and 202 only in the spring) is our culture-based intermediate language sequence that focuses students’ attention on intercultural aspects of language acquisition, vocabulary expansion, reading and writing strategies, and a review of grammar. It moves from a focus on issues of individual identity and personal experiences to a discussion of Germany today; explores national identity in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland; and supplies an overview of cultural history, literary achievements, and philosophical traditions in the German-speaking world. Students learn how to succinctly and fluently express their own viewpoints. At the end of 202, they should have achieved a solid B1 or B2 level.

Both 300 and 400 level courses count as “upper level” courses: they are content courses solely taught in German. While the 300 level courses provide larger contexts or overviews pertaining to the German speaking world (German Linguistics, German in Its Cultural Contexts, 1871–1990, Rethinking Literature), the 400 level courses discuss a certain era or topic in depth (Exiles, Refugees, Migrants, Germany Today, Fin de Siècle Vienna, Rereading Fairytales, Contemporary Germany and Sustainability, The Weimar Republic).

The German minor consists of a sequence of five courses, taught in German, starting at or above the 200 level. At least three of those courses must be at the 300 level or higher, and at least three of the five required courses have to be taken during the regular academic year at Middlebury College—for example, 201, 202, and three upper-level courses in German. A student can combine the department’s offerings with courses taken at the Middlebury summer school.

Students are required to complete eight courses in German, above GRMN 0299. Where appropriate, one course may be taken in English. We ask students to consult the department chair to make sure a course outside of our department’s offerings can be taken as a German major credit.

Among the courses taught in English that may be taken as a German major credit are the following:

• Black German History [BLST 0261]
• Blood and Iron: 19th-Century Germany (HIST 0249]
• Faust’s Metropolis: Berlin [HARC 0341]
• Literary Responses to the Holocaust [CMLT/GRMN 0310]

Not quite yet. In order to study in Mainz, Berlin, or Potsdam, students have to have junior standing. They are also required to take at least two upper-level courses in German prior to studying abroad. We strongly recommend that one of these courses is GRMN 0350: Advanced Writing Workshop (taught each fall). Check this site out: http://schoolingermany.middcreate.net/

No. Many students who major in other disciplines take language, culture, and literature classes with us and study abroad in Germany in their junior year. In recent years, we had students in biology, geology, history, history of art and architecture, international and global studies, economics, and many more who studied in Mainz, Berlin, or Potsdam. While students don’t HAVE to major in German to study abroad, they will in most cases have accrued enough German credits to declare a minor.